At court, groups gather to await Zimmerman verdict

By TAMARA LUSH , Associated Press

Jul. 13, 20134:13 PM ET

SANFORD, Fla. (AP) — As jurors deliberated for a second day in George Zimmerman's murder trial, there was little understanding between two camps assembled outside the Seminole County Courthouse to await a verdict.

Joe Burbank

George Zimmerman arrives in the courtroom for his trial at the Seminole County Criminal Justice Center, in Sanford, Fla., Friday, July 12, 2013. Zimmerman is charged in the 2012 shooting death of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin. (AP Photo/Orlando Sentinel, Joe Burbank, Pool)

George Zimmerman arrives in the courtroom for his trial at the Seminole County Criminal Justice Center, in Sanford, Fla., Friday, July 12, 2013. Zimmerman is charged in the 2012 shooting death of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin. (AP Photo/Orlando Sentinel, Joe Burbank, Pool)

George Zimmerman wipes his face after arriving in the courtroom during his trial at the Seminole County Criminal Justice Center, in Sanford, Fla., Friday, July 12, 2013. Zimmerman is charged in the 2012 shooting death of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin. (AP Photo/Orlando Sentinel, Joe Burbank, Pool)

FILE - This undated file family photo shows Trayvon Martin. Trayvon, 17, was slain in a 2012 shooting in Sanford, Fla., by neighborhood crime-watch captain George Zimmerman. The Goodman Theatre is the latest company to join a national initiative staging a night of short plays about the killing of Trayvon Martin. The Goodman will present six 10-minute works by Marcus Gardley, Tala Manassah, Mona Mansour, Winter Miller, Dominique Morisseau, Dan O’Brien, Quetzel Flores and A. Rey Pamatmat as part of a March 3 production of “Facing Our Truth: Short Plays on Trayvon Martin, Race and Privilege.” (AP Photo/Martin Family, File)

George Zimmerman wipes his face after arriving in the courtroom for his trial at the Seminole County Criminal Justice Center, in Sanford, Fla., Friday, July 12, 2013. Zimmerman is charged in the 2012 shooting death of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin. (AP Photo/Orlando Sentinel, Joe Burbank, Pool)

Assistant state attorney Bernie de la Rionda shows George Zimmerman's gun to the jury while presenting the state's closing arguments against Zimmerman during his trial in Seminole circuit court in Sanford, Fla. Thursday, July 11, 2013. Zimmerman has been charged with second-degree murder for the 2012 shooting death of Trayvon Martin. (AP Photo/Orlando Sentinel, Gary W. Green, Pool)

Shellie Zimmerman, wife of George Zimmerman, watches her husband arrive in the courtroom during his trial at the Seminole County Criminal Justice Center, in Sanford, Fla., Friday, July 12, 2013. Zimmerman is charged in the 2012 shooting death of unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin. (AP Photo/Orlando Sentinel, Joe Burbank, Pool)

FILE - Patrick Woodburn, left, and William Memola hold signs supporting George Zimmerman in front of the Seminole County Courthouse in Sanford, Fla. on Saturday, July 13, 2013. Later Saturday, Zimmerman was found not guilty in the killing of black teenager Trayvon Martin. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)

Tatiandra Williams, of Orlando, Fla., shows her support for Trayvon Martin by lying on the grass wearing a hoodie outside the Seminole County Courthouse during the George Zimmerman trial in Sanford, Fla., Saturday, July 13, 2013. Zimmerman has been charged in the 2012 shooting death of Trayvon Martin. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)

Pastor Monzell Ford, second from left, Dr. L. Ronald Durham, center, and Pastor John Long III, all of Daytona Beach, Fla., call for peace during the George Zimmerman trial outside the Seminole County Courthouse in Sanford, Fla., Saturday, July 13, 2013. Zimmerman has been charged in the 2012 shooting death of Trayvon Martin.(AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)

Cynthia Bradford, of Casselberry, Fla., wipes away tears while showing her support for Trayvon Martin outside the Seminole County Courthouse in Sanford, Fla., Saturday, July 13, 2013. Zimmerman has been charged in the 2012 shooting death of Trayvon Martin.(AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)

A man who would not provide his name, shows his support for George Zimmerman outside the Seminole County Courthouse in Sanford, Fla., Saturday, July 13, 2013. Zimmerman has been charged in the 2012 shooting death of Trayvon Martin.(AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)

Ed Wilson, of Longwood, Fla., shows his support for George Zimmerman outside the Seminole County Courthouse in Sanford, Fla., Saturday, July 13, 2013. Zimmerman has been charged in the 2012 shooting death of Trayvon Martin.(AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)

"He deserves some respect and appreciation," Casey David Kole Sr., 66, shouted about the former neighborhood watch leader. "It's a tragedy."

Patricia Dalton, 60, yelled back: "It's a tragedy that could have been avoided!"

Dalton, like most of the 100 or so people at the suburban Orlando courthouse, says she's there in support of the family of Trayvon Martin, the 17-year-old black teen from Miami who Zimmerman fatally shot last year. In Saturday's strong Florida sun, some people wore hoodies, as Martin had when he died. One woman lay in the grass, her arms spread, in a re-creation of Martin's death. Those in the smaller pro-Zimmerman camp held small signs, saying things like "We love you George" and "George got hit you must acquit."

Joseph Uy of Longwood was among an even smaller group: the few who said they had no opinion on whether Zimmerman was guilty. He said he came because he was "just curious."

"I'm neutral," he said, while cradling his three tiny Chihuahuas in his arms.

By mid-afternoon, people rallied in the heat and chanted slogans as a looming thundercloud threatened a downpour.

"Justice for Trayvon," some shouted. Others yelled, "Convict George Zimmerman."

Last year, people protested in Sanford and across the country when authorities waited 44 days before arresting Zimmerman, who identifies himself as Hispanic.

Over three weeks, the jury has heard dueling portraits of the neighborhood watch captain: a cop wannabe who took the law into his own hands or a well-meaning volunteer who shot Martin because he feared for his life.

Zimmerman, 29, has claimed self-defense in the February 2012 confrontation in a gated community where Martin was visiting his father and father's fiancee.

Zimmerman is charged with second-degree murder, but the jury also is allowed to consider manslaughter.

The judge's decision to allow that consideration was a potential blow to the defense: It could give jurors who aren't convinced the shooting amounted to murder a way to hold Zimmerman responsible for the killing.

To win a manslaughter conviction, prosecutors must show only that Zimmerman killed without lawful justification.

Zimmerman faces a maximum prison sentence of life for second-degree murder and 30 years if convicted of manslaughter, due to extra sentencing guidelines for committing a crime with a gun.

The sequestered jury of six women must sort through conflicting testimony from police, neighbors, friends and family members.

Jurors deliberated for three and a half hours when they decided to stop Friday evening. They reconvened Saturday morning, deliberated for three hours and then broke for lunch. They resumed their discussions about 1 p.m. Saturday. Jurors are being sequestered, and their identities are kept anonymous — they are identified only by number.

Police and civic leaders have pleaded for calm in Sanford and across the country if Zimmerman is convicted.

"There is no party in this case who wants to see any violence," Seminole County Sheriff Don Eslinger said. "We have an expectation upon this announcement that our community will continue to act peacefully."

In New York on Saturday, the Rev. Al Sharpton said that no matter the verdict, any demonstrations that follow it must be peaceful.

"We do not want to smear Trayvon Martin's name with violence," the civil rights leader said. "He is a victim of violence."

Benjamin Crump, an attorney for Martin's family, said the parents are emotional but doing as well as expected as they await a verdict.

"(Jurors) staying out longer and considering the evidence and testimony is a good thing for us arriving at a just verdict," Crump said.

On Saturday morning, Martin's mother, Sybrina Fulton, shared on Twitter what she called her favorite Bible verse: "Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight."

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Associated Press writers Kyle Hightower, Mike Schneider and Tony Winton in Sanford and Colleen Long in New York contributed to this report.

SANFORD, Fla. (AP) — As jurors deliberated for a second day in George Zimmerman's murder trial, there was little understanding between two camps assembled outside the Seminole County Courthouse to await a verdict.